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Allergy to peppermint oil tablets

Last night I was vomitting and so listless that my partner thought it would be a good idea to try out his peppermint oil tablets.
So I took one, I was willing to try anything.

In about 10-20 minutes I started 'smelling' peppermint in my system... like a metallic kind of peppermint in my blood. Its hard to describe, but it was like peppermint was everywhere inside me. And just as I announced how weird it was I suddenly got a headache, got itchy all over my body, my sinuses instantly swelled up as did my eyes which were immensely itchy. My throat closed up and was itchy and I could barely breathe. I started sneezing furiously until my sinuses were bleeding. I lost my voice and my breathing was just a tiny wheeze. I jumped in the shower and stayed in there constantly blowing my nose and washing my face and my sinuses. I was prepared to tell my partner to call an ambulance, he had followed me into the bathroom when I suddenly started to look terrible. He was very concerned. But thankfully it didnt get any worse and had mostly passed after about half an hour.

So although it is rare, just be aware that peppermint oil can cause allergic reactions sometimes. Im lucky it didnt get worse. I think I will stay away from peppermint from now on lol

yeah pretty much, like instant severe hayfever. Only my entire body was itchy and my throat had closed up so much I could barely breathe. I felt like I was going to pass out and my heart was racing. Pretty scary.

That is a severe reaction Giggle. It sounds a lot like the Anaphylactic Shock that some people who are allergic to bee-stings get. I have a friend who's allergic to bee-stings, and he has to keep an Epinephrine Autoinjector with him at all times and has to use it if he's stung.

Have you ever noticed an allergic reaction to food or drink that has peppermint oil as an ingredient?

BonusMom, I think the GP may have made it worse maybe? Maybe made me more susceptible to a reaction.

Rob, I've never been a fan of peppermint so have stayed away from it, ironically. The smell always gave me a headache. I have chewed gum before and had breath mints and eaten my partners choc mint biscuits. They have all given me an upset stomach and sore throat. Nothing this severe though, but Im sure the peppermint tablets would contain a heck of a lot more peppermint. It did occur to me that my throat may completely close off but I wasnt willing to panic and send myself to the ER until I knew it would. Probably not the smartest course of action because by then it might be too late... but at least it turned out alright in the end.